Chapter 21: A Sun on the Ceiling

Juvia was having an excellent day. She had managed to hug Gray three times, and the last time he hadn't instantly shoved her off! That must mean that he had feelings for her, too! And she was going on a job tomorrow with Cana. They had been talking more since Freed had caught them in that rune trap. Juvia hadn't really had any female friends in a long time. Phantom Lord hadn't been a place to foster friendships – only tentative alliances. The fact that she and Gajeel had managed to become friends anyway was fairly shocking. Fairy Tail was a much warmer guild.

She hummed happily to herself and turned down a side alley that was her preferred shortcut to Fairy Hills. Spending time away from her beloved Gray was always hard but unfortunately being able to pay her rent was important.

"I think it's time we had a talk."

And Juvia's day abruptly went from excellent to very, very bad, because being trapped up to the neck in a block of ice was never a good way to start a conversation. The ice block itself was shaped like a giant rosebud. Ultear Milkovich was standing in front of her, arms crossed, exuding that quiet, simmering rage that sent her friends and foes alike running and shrieking in terror. It was not a look at that Juvia had ever wanted to be on the receiving end of.

"U-Ultear! Has Juvia done something to upset you?" Juvia quavered. The only reason Erza was generally considered scarier than Ultear was because Ultear's temper had a much longer fuse.

"That's a loaded question." Ultear's hands moved to her hips. "You know, I like you, Juvia. You're a nice person, and you're trying to atone for what you did in Phantom Lord. That's pretty admirable. But I think it's long past time the two of us had a conversation about stalking and the meaning of the word no."

"Juvia doesn't understand."

"I already figured that much. Gray is my little brother, and you are making him intensely uncomfortable."

"But Juvia loves-"

"I don't care if you love him – you are stalking him. It doesn't matter how you feel about someone, stalking them is never appropriate. And besides, how can you say that you love him? You barely even know him. If you'd ever bothered to sit down and talk to him, you'd know that Gray hates people touching him."

Juvia felt her eyes begin to well with tears.

"Juvia is not a stalker! Gray is just slow to realize his feelings!"

"You can't force someone to love you. That's why he practically runs away every time he sees you. And don't think I missed what you were up to with that accidentally potion-ing the whole guild thing. If that had actually worked, it would have been tantamount to you mentally raping him," Ultear snarled.

"No! Juvia would never-"

"But you tried. That was cruel and incredibly selfish. There's a reason love potions are illegal. The only person you were think about when you bought that potion was you."

Juvia felt like she was going to be sick. She remembered another time. Hands on her throat. A drunken man who wouldn't take no for an answer. Thank god her body was made of water. She'd felt so helpless even after she all but sliced the man's hand off. Had she- Had she really nearly gone that far?

Tears were running freely down her face now.

"But… Gray made the rain stop."

Ultear's expression softened but only slightly.

"I'm glad that happened for you. But that still doesn't make what you're doing alright. The only thing you're in love with at the moment is a fantasy of Gray. I can guarantee you that that fantasy is almost nothing like the real person. At this point in his life, I don't think Gray is even emotionally ready to handle a romantic relationship. You want to be close to Gray? Try just being his friend instead of drugging him. Maybe someday he'll return your affection, maybe he won't, but it will never happen at all if you don't get to know him as a person. Or if you steal his ability to decide for himself. Who knows? Maybe you'll like the real person better than the fantasy."

"You think so?" Juvia asked quietly.

Ultear shrugged.

"He's my brother – my opinion is inherently biased." She paused. "But I do know that he could use some more friends in his life."

"Juvia- Juvia will think about what Ultear has said."

"Good." Ultear turned and started to walk away, then stopped. "And just so you know, if you continue to throw yourself at him anyway, I will freeze your body solid and then use time magic to disintegrate all of your clothes in front of the entire guild." She glanced back over her shoulder and raised an eyebrow, "Nobody messes with my little brothers." Then she sashayed away.

A few minutes after Ultear had left, the ice rose holding Juvia hostage burst apart in a shower of sparkling crystals. Juvia stood still for a few moments, staring into middle space. She had to think about this.

Juvia spent several hours pacing around Magnolia as the sky grew darker and darker, thinking over Ultear's words and her own actions. She didn't really want to believe that her actions could be considered stalking, but she also liked the idea of Gray not constantly shoving her away. It was no use. She needed outside input. Someone who would be totally unbiased about the situation and be able to set her straight.

There was really only one person she could turn to.

The door was answered on the third knock.

"For fuck's sake, Juvia, do you know what time it-"

"Has Juvia been stalking Gray?" she interrupted.

Gajeel blinked at her owlishly. He was wearing that dazed expression that he generally got when he had just woken up.

"Yes. It's pretty damn creepy. I still can't believe you made a doll of the guy." Juvia felt her lower lip begin to quiver. "What happened? Did he finally put in for a restraining order or something?"

Juvia burst into tears and flung herself at Gajeel. He let out an indignant squawk.

"Juvia doesn't want to be a stalker! She just wants Gray to love her back!"

Gajeel let out a longsuffering sigh and pulled her inside so that he could close the door.

"Come on – I'll make some of that awful tea you like."

"What is Juvia going to do, Gajee?"

"Juvia is going to calm down and stop calling me 'Gajee.'" Gajeel managed to pry Juvia loose from his waist and plunked her down in one of the two mismatched chairs in his kitchen. The second chair existed solely for Juvia's benefit. She was the only person who ever visited him, and he'd gotten tired of her either perching on his counter or stealing his seat. Juvia politely never mentioned that the chipped paint of the second chair was blue, and that he knew blue was her favorite color.

Juvia was only sniffing occasionally by the time a mug of tea was clanked down in front of her. Gajeel claimed that she had left the tin of tea at his house once. Juvia knew he had actually bought it himself. She smiled down into her tea. Gajeel could be thoughtful in the strangest ways sometimes. He was a good friend.

Would Gray like someone like that? Someone who made him his favorite drink when he was down and kept an extra chair in their kitchen for when he visited? Juvia didn't know, but she thought that everyone deserved a friend like that. And the more she thought, the more she realized that she honestly didn't know what Gray would like. Did he prefer tea or coffee? Sweet or savory? What was his favorite color? She knew that Gray and the rest of the Ice Djinn Trio had been taught by Ur Milkovich and that the woman wasn't around anymore, but what had happened to her? Was she dead? Was Gray still grieving for her? What had happened to his parents? How had he even joined Fairy Tail in the first place?

A friend would have known more of those answers than she did. It was… humbling. No wonder Ultear had been so upset with her.

"Gajeel, Juvia wants to be Gray's friend."

Gajeel paused, the piece of iron he'd been snacking on halfway to his mouth.

"Well, that's different. I thought you just wanted to get into his pants."

Juvia smacked him.

"Juvia loves Gray."

"Uh huh." Gajeel's expression was totally unrepentant.

"How does Juvia become Gray's friend?"

Gajeel gave her a long stare.

"You're honestly asking me this. Me."

"Gajeel became friends with Juvia."

"That was mostly by accident. You should really be asking someone else about this." Juvia pouted at him in a way that generally bent him to her will. "I dunno. Maybe try talking to him instead of at him and stop simpering so much. You were part of the Element Four, have some dignity for fuck's sake. Or," Gajeel hesitated, and Juvia was surprised to realize that he looked embarrassed and uncomfortable, "you could try talking to Shor- Levy. Her fashion accessories are male and she's friends with them. And she's been at the guild quite a while. She might have some suggestions."

The tips of his ears were tinted ever so slightly red. Juvia raised an eyebrow and stored this observation away as something to tease Gajeel about later when he wasn't being so helpful. Another thought occurred to her.

"But what about Juvia's love rival?!"

"What love rival?"

"Lucy."

Gajeel actually burst out laughing. Juvia pouted at him again, but this time it didn't have any effect.

"She's not interested in him. At all. Loke, maybe Salamander, but definitely not the stripper. Dragon slayer senses don't lie." He tapped the side of his nose. "Bunny girl is just one of the naturally friendly ones."

"Oh." That was nice. Juvia liked Lucy well enough as long as she wasn't trying to steal Gray away from her. "Perhaps Lucy could help Juvia as well?"

Gajeel shrugged.

"You'd have to ask her – having a good nose doesn't mean I'm psychic. I guess you could always try getting to know his siblings better, too."

"Juvia hadn't thought of that. Lyon is very polite."

"Juvia doesn't think of a lot of things," Gajeel grumbled under his breath.

Juvia kicked him hard in the shin and sipped her tea. She had a lot to think about, but she rather liked the new dream that was starting to form in her head. A kitchen with mismatched chairs. Not just one for Gray, but maybe ones for Cana and Gajeel and Lyon as well. A place where friends could talk or just share silence. A sky blue ceiling with a sun painted in the middle so that even on the days when it rained, she would still be able to see the sky. She could picture it all so easily. And for once, her mind's eye didn't add sparkles or roses or a wash of pink or make Gray's eyes wider than they really were. For once it felt… real. Feasible. Attainable. Like something she could really have instead of the fantasy she'd been chasing these last few months. The idea of just being able to sit with Gray and talk to him was… surprisingly nice. She smiled.

It was a start.

A/N: I'm still on the fence about pairings, but at the very least I do want Juvia to be friends with Gray and the rest of the Ice Djinn Trio.

Guest - I hadn't thought of that, but you're right! Now that the Thunder Legion are interacting with the rest of the guild, Freed and Levy are definitely going to be swapping language notes!

Celt - Thank you so much! I'm really glad you're enjoying it!